The present invention is directed to the loading of cut cucumbers into containers or jars and, more specifically, to a method and assembly for the loading of cut cucumbers into containers or jars for curing into pickles and the marketing of the loaded pickles.
The proper curing of cucumbers to produce pickles is essential to obtaining high quality taste, consistency and crispness of the pickles. In order to accomplish this proper cure, the ratio between cucumber mass and the brine must be carefully controlled. Where curing is to be accomplished in the jar or container in which the pickles are to be ultimately marketed, tight packing of cucumber halves, slices or other cut forms is needed to obtain the appropriate ratio between cucumber mass and brine. Tight packing is also important to the appearance of the pickles in the jar at the point of marketing. This requisite tight packing and ratio of cucumbers to brine is not always capable of being accomplished by manual loading of the cut cucumbers into the jars, and mechanized assemblies and methods for automated loading heretofore were also unavailable which would consistently function to load the cucumbers into the jar without unacceptable damage to the cut cucumbers or consistently ensure the correct cucumber to brine ratio.
It has been discovered in the present invention that both appearance and desired tightness of pack may be accomplished by mechanical automated loading of cut cucumber parts into a jar. In the assembly and method of the present invention this mechanical automated loading is capable of higher loading speeds than prior hand packing procedures, and the inconsistencies and labor costs which attended the manual loading procedures are avoided. Moreover, damage and breaking of the cut cucumber pieces during loading is minimized.
In the assembly and method of the present invention, the cut cucumbers are divided between a pair of receptacles, one for each of two containers or jars. The cut cucumber pieces are then inserted into the containers or jars on an angle across the neck or opening of the respective containers or jars, with a cut face of the cucumber which is being inserted into the jar facing upward. Once the cucumber pieces have entered the jar opening, the pieces are directed toward the outer wall of the jar. These procedures minimize detrimental bending of the cucumber which might otherwise result in damage to the cucumber, and yet a tight pack of the cucumber pieces can be accomplished mechanically and in an automated fashion. The present invention also permits tight loading of the cucumbers around the outer wall of the jar or container in a manner which leaves the center empty for the subsequent loading of additional cut cucumber pieces in order to obtain the required cucumber to brine ratio.
In one principal aspect of the present invention, a method of loading elongated articles of food into a container comprises positioning an elongated article of the food in a first receptacle and longitudinally moving the article from the first receptacle into and past at least one knife to slice the article over its length into at least two pieces and to urge the sliced pieces beyond the knife and into a pair of second elongate tubular receptacles such that the sliced pieces are divided between the second receptacles. The second receptacles are axially aligned with the first elongate receptacle during slicing of the article of food. The pair of second receptacles with the sliced pieces therein are moved apart from each other and to a position in which each of the respective pair of second receptacles with the sliced pieces therein is aligned with an opening in one of a pair of the containers which are to be loaded. The sliced pieces are longitudinally moved from their respective second receptacles into each of the respective containers to deposit the sliced pieces from one of the second receptacles into one of the containers and the sliced pieces from the other of the second receptacles into the other of the containers.
In another principal aspect of the present invention, a method of loading elongated articles of food into a container comprises slicing the article over its length into at least two pieces with a knife, and separating the sliced pieces and the knife from each other. At least one of the sliced pieces is moved across the opening of one of the containers which is to be loaded and at a substantial angle both to the axis of the container and to the opening of the container, and in a direction toward the outer wall of the container to deposit the sliced pieces into the container.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the foregoing methods include exerting a force on the end of the article of food opposite the end that is moved into the knife to move the article into and beyond the knife.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, in the foregoing methods the article of food is moved past a plurality of knives to form a plurality of slices, and half of the slices are urged into one of the second elongate receptacles, and the remaining half of the slices are urged into the other of the second elongate receptacles.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the foregoing methods include slicing a portion of the outer surface of the article of food from the food and discarding it prior to urging the slices into their respective containers.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, in the foregoing methods when the sliced pieces are urged into the pair of second receptacles, the receptacles are positioned adjacent each other and when the receptacles are moved apart, they are pivoted about 90.degree. from each other.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, when each of the sliced pieces is moved from its respective second receptacles into each of its respective containers, it is moved at a substantial angle both to the axis of the container and to the opening of the container and toward the outer wall of the container, and preferably the angle relative to the opening of the container is about 60-75.degree..
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, in the foregoing methods each of the sliced pieces has at least one open face thereon which is formed by the slicing, and that open face of the sliced pieces is positioned to face substantially away from the opening of the container as the sliced pieces are moving at a substantial angle to the opening of the container to permit the sliced pieces to bend as they are entering the opening, and the open face faces the wall of the container after the sliced pieces have been deposited in the container.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, in the foregoing methods a deposit chute is located between each of the second receptacles and its respective container, and at least one of the respective deposit chutes of each of the second receptacles and the containers are moved relative to each other so that each of the respective deposit chutes is positioned into its respective container, and is retracted from in the last mentioned position following deposit of the sliced pieces in the respective container.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, in the foregoing methods each of the containers is rotationally indexed about their respective axes following the deposit of the sliced pieces into the respective containers, and the previously performed steps are sequentially repeated to deposit additional sliced pieces into each of the containers and next to the previously deposited sliced pieces.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the foregoing methods include holding the sliced pieces which have been deposited in each of the containers against the outer wall of the containers while the containers are being rotationally indexed.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the foregoing methods include laterally moving next adjacent previously deposited sliced pieces so as to make room for subsequently deposited sliced pieces simultaneously with the deposit of the next subsequently deposited sliced pieces.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, an assembly for loading elongated articles of food into a container comprises a first elongate receptacle for receiving one of the elongated articles of food, at least one knife associated with the first receptacle, and a pusher for pushing the article of food in the first receptacle past the knife to slice the article of food over its length into a least two pieces. A pair of second movable elongate receptacles are provided which are movable between a first position in which they are positioned adjacent each other and to receive each of the respective sliced pieces as they move past the knife, and a second position in which the pair of second movable elongate receptacles are spaced apart from each other. A container positioning means is provided for positioning at least two containers with openings such that the openings of the respective containers are aligned with each of the respective second movable elongate receptacles when those receptacles are in their spaced apart second position, and a pusher pushes each of the two respective sliced pieces from their respective second movable elongate receptacles into each of the respective containers to deposit the respective sliced pieces into the respective containers.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the foregoing assembly the knife is positioned adjacent a discharge end of the first elongate receptacle, and the pusher for pushing the article of food past the knife is constructed and arranged to push the end of the article opposite the knife toward the knife.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, in the foregoing assemblies a plurality of knives form a plurality of sliced pieces, and when the article of food is being sliced, the pair of second movable elongate receptacles are positioned so that one of the second movable elongate receptacles receives some of the sliced pieces and the other of the movable elongate receptacles receives the remainder of the sliced pieces.
In still another principal of the present invention, the foregoing assemblies include a knife for slicing a portion of the outer surface of the article of food from the food, and means is provided for diverting the sliced portion of the outer surface from the second movable elongate receptacles.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, in the foregoing assemblies the second movable elongate receptacles are pivoted about 90.degree. from each other when they are moved between the first and second positions.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the foregoing assemblies include a deposit chute between each of the second movable elongate receptacles and its respective container when the second receptacles are in the second position, and means is provided for moving the chute and/or its container relative to each other so that the chute extends into the opening of its container for the deposit of the sliced pieces into the container, and the chute is removed from the container opening following the deposit of the sliced pieces.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, in the foregoing assemblies the deposit chutes extend at a substantial angle both to the axis of the container and to the opening of the container and toward the outer wall of the container which has been positioned for deposit of the food and when the second movable elongate receptacles have been positioned in the second position, and preferably the angle relative to the opening of the container is about 60-75.degree..
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the foregoing assemblies include indexing means for rotationally indexing the containers about their respective axes following the deposit of the sliced pieces into the respective containers to permit the subsequent deposit of additional sliced pieces into each of the containers.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the foregoing assemblies include resilient fingers for laterally spacing previously deposited sliced pieces from sliced pieces which are subsequently being deposited next adjacent to the previously deposited sliced pieces.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the foregoing assemblies include a mandrel which extends into each container during the deposit of sliced pieces into the container, and which is constructed and arranged to hold the sliced pieces against the outer wall of the container as the container is being indexed.
In still another principal aspect of the present invention, the elongated articles of food are cucumbers.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood through a consideration of the following detailed description.